Charger Blue loomed large during Heath Hudson’s time at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH). For three years, he served as the UAH mascot, a secret that can now be revealed because he receives his Bachelor of Science in cybersecurity engineering from the UAH College of Engineering during commencement ceremonies at the Von Braun Center Propst Arena Dec. 15, 2025.
Ann Marie Martin | UAH
Heath Hudson didn’t seek the spotlight.
He was a mild-mannered cybersecurity major at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) College of Engineering in fall 2021 when his life as a UAH student changed forever. It happened one day when he was hanging out in the Office of Student Life, just minding his own business.
“Depending on who you ask, I was either in the right place at the right time or the wrong place at the wrong time,” he recalled. “At that time, there wasn’t a consistent Charger Blue, and they were trying to find a Charger Blue for Higher Ed Day.”
Hudson’s older brother, Brad, who worked in the office, was discussing the mascot issue with a group that included Nikki Goode, now the senior director of the Student Union and programming, then the director of Student Life, which oversees Charger Blue.
“It’s almost like they all had the same idea at the same time. I was just sitting there trying to do some homework, and they all kind of panned over to me. I think it was Brad who pointed at me and said, ‘Go try on the suit.’ So I went and put it on. It fit almost like it was tailored to be worn by me. I never really looked back.”
Hudson received his Bachelor of Science in cybersecurity engineering the morning of Dec. 15 during the first of two UAH commencement ceremonies at the Von Braun Center Propst Arena. UAH is a part of The University of Alabama System.
UAH’s worst-kept secret
Now that Hudson is a UAH graduate, his secret identity, his origin story and his adventures as Charger Blue can be told.
“I’ve jokingly called it UAH’s worst-kept secret. For most of the time that I acted as Charger Blue, I had the same handler, Josh Jamison, who also happened to be my best friend. Anyone who knew me would see Heath and Josh out and about, and then, all of a sudden, it was just Josh with Charger Blue. People who were observant enough to notice, noticed, but people who knew exactly who I was all the time – that’s a list of 10 or less.”
The Charger Blue suit was a great fit from the start, but getting comfortable with the identity took some practice.
“My first event at Higher Ed Day was the first time I had been in the suit for more than long enough to try it on. Higher Ed Day is an event with all 14 four-year universities in the state of Alabama and their Student Government Associations and mascots. My first time in the suit was with a bunch of mascots who had been mascotting for two or three years already. I was still pretty rigid. It took three or four months of me suiting up at least once a week to get fully used to it.”
Even if it was a little awkward initially, that experience hooked Hudson. When Goode called him a couple of months later to ask if he’d suit up and throw out the first pitch for a Trash Pandas game, he said, “Absolutely!”
And when they asked him to be the permanent Charger Blue, he was ready to run with it, serving from March 2022 to March 2025.
Over the semesters, he added spirit to student orientations, athletic contests, Association for Campus Entertainment events at all hours and in a wide variety of temperatures.
“Almost any event that we had at UAH, I was there for it.”
Joys of getting involved
Being Charger Blue pulled Hudson into campus life, and that brought its own rewards.
“It helped me break out of my shell. When you’re wearing a mask and no one knows who you are and you’re expected to be rowdy and rambunctious, you can just do your own thing, which is really fun. It helped me get more active on campus. Since I was a commuter, it was very much go to class, go home. But when Charger Blue invitations showed up on my calendar, I had to be there. I was normally at an event for an hour or an hour and a half, and then I would get out of the suit. Since I was already there, I might as well enjoy the event as myself.”
But mascot work is not all fun and games.
“It is a hot suit. Contrary to popular belief, all that muscle was not me. There’s a lot of padding, mostly across the chest and then on the arms to give them those big biceps. Miss Nikki got me a fan vest, a nylon material with fans in the back, just to help with a little bit of circulation.”
Vision was another challenge. Hudson could see through a rectangle in a darker blue spot on the top of the head. No peripheral vision and plenty of blind spots low to the ground. His handler offered guidance, and Hudson learned how to stay aware of the people around him, especially little kids.
“Kids are either going to scream and run away or get really excited and run right up to Charger Blue. We had to make sure those kids stayed safe while I was moving around.”
After passing on the Charger Blue suit during spring 2025, Hudson jumped into his next life even before graduation. He started his full-time job in May with Turner Construction, where he’s in charge of their information systems.
“It’s a lot like an IT position, but a lot more in depth. There’s more networking involved. I get to go out to job sites before they even start digging to set up the trailer cities. They’re basically job site offices for full network, full conference room workstation setups, the works.”
On July 5, he and Kaitlyn Moore got married.
Recently, Hudson had the opportunity to greet the new Charger Blue and take a few pictures with his former alter ego.
“I dropped by Student Life to pick up my cap and gown, and I saw the new actor getting ready. It was weird how I felt about it. It was almost like it was a good friend of mine. You see them hanging out with someone else, and you weren’t invited. Almost.”